The Way it Should Have Been
by Minniemora
Summary: Even though that Spike and Rarity are married with a child of their own, it's hard to see Sweetie grow up, Just as hard as it is for Apple Jack and Rainbow Dash to see their sisters, Scootaloo and Apple Bloom, do the same. Let's see how life really works out for them in the end. An alternate reality of Auntie Rarity.
1. Chapter 1

Sweetie Belle's POV

"See you tomorrow Rarity!" I giggled, putting the finishing touches on my eyelashes: the most perfect rhinestones I'd ever SEEN!

"Oh, very funny Sweetie Belle!" my less than amused sister replied. Stomping all four hooves in my room she stood impatiently. "Your curfew is five forty nine, remember?" she tested.

"It's five forty five!" I complained. Her lips curled into a sleek smile and her eyes shut from the grin.

"Perfect! I won't have time to miss you!" I swear, she's worse than dad! She acts like I'm going to a rave, and not prom.

"Rarity!" I whined.

"Please, Sweetie belle!" my sister complained, hooves over ears. "DO stop that infernal noise! For goodness sakes, you're almost a fully grown mare. Show some class, dear."

"Me? Show class? Well!" I stood from my vanity and strutted in front of my sister. "How dare you insult my posh and lady-like manner? If anything, I am THE most gorgeously perfected young mare in all of Ponyville. Nay: all the LAND!" I satirically proclaimed. "Now, excuse me while I find my shoes."

"You saved your shoes for LAST?!" Rarity was obviously appalled. "Sweetie Belle, you're only harming yourself. You know as well as I, shoes are the building blocks of outfits. Of course, this outfit is only the most IMPORTANT of your life!"

"Here they are," I grinned. I pulled my mother's vintage heels out of the closet and stared a moment before slipping them on. They're perfect. My small moment of serenity is almost instantly shattered by my sister's piercing voice.

"TAKE THOSE HIDEOUS MONSTROSITIES OFF YOUR ANGELIC HOOVES THIS INSTANT!" she shrieked. Why does my sister have to be so anti-mom's wardrobe? She has some really popular clothes from when she was in high school.

"Rarity, come on! They're priceless vintage shoes! It means a lot to mom that I'm wearing them to prom. They're what she wore you know!"

"Yes, I DO know. In fact she tried to get me to wear them to mine too, but I've learned a lot since those days. I simply told her I didn't want to wear them and had to listen to her cry and plead for months. Now that I'm older I've realized the proper way to handle such a situation. She pleaded that I wear her wedding dress, but instead Opal "accidently" poured bleach on its entirety and had to stitch my own."

"How did you manage to get Opal to do that?" I asked.

"She-...never mind that now! The point is: you cannot wear those shoes!"

"We're here!" cheered a voice from the living room. Spike must have let every pony in.

"Oh pumpkin pie! Everypony's here!"

"Urgh, I've told him time and again: don't refer to me as edible objects," Rarity growled.

"Rarity, can y'all help me with Apple Bloom's dang dress? I can't get this darned thing tied!"

"Apple Jack, it's not supposed to tie. It is a zipped dress with a ribbon backing. The ribbons are solely there to hide the unsightly fashion faux pas."

"I thought y'all bought a dress! Not a darned contraption," Apple Jack sighed. Rainbow Dash was flying around snapping pictures of Scootaloo, then Apple Bloom, followed by me.

"When you guys are our age, I'm totally blackmailing you with these," she taunted. Apple Jack's hoof slammed into the back of Rainbow's head.

"Now, let these fillies be! They're goin' ta prom, just like EVERY other normal gal ought to!"

"Yes, and every respectable young lady must remember their class, am I correct?" my sister aimed at me.

"Yes," I groaned in annoyance. "Now let us go! We've got cheese and fruit to chip away at ever-so-daintily."

"Y'all can eat however daintily you want, but I'm starved!"

"Everypony will be granted sustenance after we take pictures!" Rarity demanded. I scoured the premises with my eyes. I don't see Shadow yet! How can I take pictures without my date?

"I can't believe y'all are makin' me take Big Mac ta prom!" Apple Bloom exclaimed.

"He's chaperoning!" Apple Jack deflected. "Ain't like you had a date. You're too young ta be worryin' about silly little colts." The annoyed look on Apple Bloom's face said it all.

"Sweetie Belle!" panted Shadow, coming on the scene. "I'm so sorry I'm late." Rarity's eyes narrowed and her eyebrow twitched, cuing Spike to place a hand on her back.

"Happy place," he cautioned. "Growing up is a part of life, remember?"

"Shadow." Rarity cleared her throat in attempt to regain composure. "Would you please stand next to my sister so I can take your picture?"

"Y-yeah, sure," Shadow smiled. He stepped up to me and reached to put a hoof around my shoulder: only to have it swatted.

"Not that close! Any closer and you'd be standing on top of her!"

"Rarity!" Spike warned. In an exasperated sigh, Rarity held her camera up. In a moment, her anger dissipated.

"Sweetie Belle.." she began. "You look...brilliantly stunning." I heard her voice break, and it really touched me. Standing behind that camera was a grown married mare. She had a husband and a kid of her own, but she still had room for me. All of my life we've been there for each other, and it's just nice to know I still mean so much to her. Even after all the new editions.

"Say cheese you two!" Apple Jack's voice boomed. Our attention captured, all our heads turned to the action. Big Mac in a TUXEDO, was taking his picture with Apple Bloom. Rainbow Dash lay, laughing hysterically on the floor. Scootaloo and I tried not to laugh, in respect from our friend, but who could really blame us? I mean they're in formal attire for Celestia's sake!

"I'm glad y'all think this is so funny!" Apple Bloom huffed. "Let's just get this over with!" she grumbled.

"Now, I don't see what is so wrong with goin' to the prom with your big brother!" Apple Jack defended.

"That's why bronies make odd stories about our family!" she yelled out on the way to the carriage.

"I guess we better get going..." I decided out loud to break the tension.

"Sweetie Belle, let them go on. I've got one thing left to tell you."

"I'll save you a seat," Shadow smiled, honoring Rarity's request.

"Thanks, Shadow," I giggled. He's just such a charming stallion...

"Sweetie Belle," Rarity began the second he was out of sight. "I know that tonight is a night of beauty, and possible pressures. I just want you to know that no matter what anypony tells you: you don't HAVE to do anything. You do realize that, don't you?"

"Yes," I promised. "Rarity, don't worry." I pleaded, "Everything's going to be perfect: I'm not going to screw up tonight."


	2. Chapter 2

Apple Bloom's POV

I ain't never seen a carriage so fancy! It's got snacks, beverages, and all the darn trimmings I hear movie ponies get! Rarity, Apple Jack, and all the other elements paid for us to be able to rent this. It was real sweet of Fluttershy and Twilight especially, because they ain't got relation to any one of us!

"Are y'all excited?" Big Mac asked, halfheartedly from his seat.

"Excited?!" Scootaloo chimed in. "Are you kidding? This is pure torture! Rainbow Dash hasn't stopped badgering me since I woke up this morning!" With the way she was dressed to the nine, I wasn't surprised! I'd never seen Scootaloo in a dress! Well, at least not teenage Scootaloo: who is practically a different pony.

"Aw, come on Scootaloo! Get in the prom spirit! We're only able to do this once ya know!" I reminded. "Just look at Sweetie! She's excited," I laughed. All the heads of the car turned to the only couple in the carriage. Sweetie's cheeks turned a dim shade of rosy pink, and Shadow continued to shamelessly hold her hand. I would never go near another filly's coltfriend- especially not my best friend's- but man that boy looks nice in a tux. Plus that Manehattan accent could drive any mare wild. Not to mention that charming way his lip curls when he says something snarky. He's a bad boy with a kind heart: every filly's dream! ...He's also my best friend's coltfriend.

"Yeah, she's fitting in the prom spirit alright," Scootaloo scoffed. "Prom night dumpster foals, anyone?" Sweetie's pink cheeks intensified into bright tomatoes and her head turned like she might cry. Just before I could slap the fire out of Scootaloo, Shadow took care of it.

"I bet if two mares could have foals you'd be all over that too," he defended. I couldn't help but laugh, feeling a little alone since Big Mac sat with an emotionless expression.

"Shadow!" Sweetie gasped. To be totally fair: Scootaloo is a lesbian, and she DID deserve that. Sweetie's too kind ta admit anything rude is true, but I know she has ta appreciate Shadow defending her. She ain't the kind of mare ta be snoozing in the hay at her age.

"Alright," Big Mac started. "Didn't realize this chaperonin' would start in the cart, but sit down everypony! I don't wanna hear another word till we get there: understand?"

"Yes, sergeant," I remarked with an eye roll. That earned a deserving parental glare. Sitting next to Big Mac when he's angry reminds me of what it must be like to sit next to a guard stallion. I wish he wasn't so serious all the time! Sometimes I wish he would just have a little fun and realize I'm almost a grown mare!

Rarity's POV

"And did you SEE the way he looked at her? "Oh I've got your corsage! It's sea foam to match your perfect eyes!"" Like he knows ANYTHING about color coordination! I mean, Sweetie's eyes would pop the MOST with a beautiful rose quartz to contrast! Perhaps even a daring amber sunglow...Now this is going to bother me. I won't be able to sleep until I know for certain." I began to wander to my fabric splotches, when Spike intervened.

"That was the worst Manehattan impression I've ever heard."

"Is that really the only thing you've got to say about this situation?"

"Come on princess, you're so much better than this. We both know that Sweetie Belle has a good head on her shoulders."

"Oh, don't try to sound so profound!" I insisted. "Sweetie Belle is my sister and-"

"My sister-in-law! I'll knock Shadow's strings loose if he steps out of line." Spike is so adorable when he's threatening. Although, he's not the adorable little dragon he used to be. Now, he towers a foot over me and could burn down all of Ponyville if he so chose to do so.

"Darling, do you think it's Shadow...or me?" I asked. "On second thought, don't answer that. Of course it's Shadow! I mean, what sister would I be if I was OK with Sweetie dating a mannerless, brute with an untouched mane, and a careless attitude?"

"It's you," Spike suggested, with no remorse or pre-thinking. I gasped in shock at his remark.

"It is not me!" I demanded.

"Rarity: it's you," he repeated. In an attempt to leave the conversation, he laid in our bed and covered himself with our blanket. In a vengeful tantrum, I ripped the blanket off of his body.

"It is NOT me!" I insisted. Spike didn't bother to turn around: the coward!

"Rarity, baby, I love you. I really do, but I want to go to sleep and I don't feel like fighting about how far in denial you really are. Is that ok?"

"NO! No it is not "ok!" You're trying to tell me that I have a problem! That I'm crazy or something to that effect! How dare you tell me I'm too protective of my sister? Too concerned about the stallions she brings home!"

"Yep, glad that's settled, good night!

"URGH! You are impossible! I don't understand why I would pick a husband that wouldn't even support me! Spike, don't you have the slightest bit of empathy?"

"Don't you?" he asked.

"Oh, yes. I am SO sorry that your wife is talking your ear off. How dare she berate you for acting so FOOLISHLY and implying she's insane!"

"I have NEVER said that to your face!" Spike bantered.

"Oh, enjoy your rest!" I sighed with a hoof-stomp. "I'll go make sure our offspring is sleeping properly, and not growing to be anything like her father."

"Love you," Spike laughed. I was too frustrated to respond, but I suppose that Spike's silliness is really something that keeps me levelheaded. He only says idiotic things for my own good. He really is such a sweet husband...

Apple Bloom's POV

"Apple Bloom!" Scootaloo laughed. "You gotta try this!" She handed me a sloshing drink with an unsteady hand.

"What tha heck IS this stuff?" I asked, shoving it out of my line-of-smell. It smelt like a sulfur pit or somethin'!

"It's vodka mixed with Red Dash and a bunch of other caffeine. It really pumps up the party!"

"Uh, more like pumps up your heart rate, no thanks. Unlike you, I actually wanna remember tonight!"

"Why's that? Do you like memories of being sad and alone?"

"No, that's you. I'm here with Sweetie, and all my other friends. I guess there's one less that I thought." I started to walk away, only to have a roaming eye stare at me. Man, Diamond's boyfriend gives me the creeps. The stallion looks like a dang drug dealer. I stood by the scrumptious looking cheesecake, waiting for some stallions to walk away so I could chow down without shame. In the corner of my eye I could still see that guy looking at me. I didn't see Diamond anywhere in sight, but maybe that's why he was staring. I decided I needed to be around some ponies I knew before he came towards me, and then I noticed that everypony I thought was here really wasn't. I started to walk away a little quicker, but he started to follow me. I knew he was starin' at me funny! As fast as I could, without making a scene I saw his shadow catch up with mine and grab my hoof.

"Apple Bloom, right? Nice to meet you," he smiled. Maybe he was just as lonely as I was...he didn't seem like he was trying to cause a problem. Come to think of it, if I came here with Diamond Tiara: I would be alone too. I started to talk back, but then he started to. "This prom is really getting bad. Everypony's either drunk, dancing, or going home."

"Y-yeah, I noticed that too."

"So, which one are you?" he asked with a raised brow.

"Excuse me?"

"Are you drunk?"

"No! I'm not an idiot! Besides, it ain't worth goin' ta jail for."

"I agree," he laughed. "Well, you're not dancing: so you must be going home."

"I actually planned on staying a little longer..." I admitted.

"Really? Well, you know you could come home with me if you were up for a little more fun."

"Can I help you?!" I heard. My anxious heart was shaking my whole body. I turned to see my big brother standing with a threatening glare.

"Chill, dude," gasped the newly startled stallion. "What's your deal?"

"What's your name, son?" asked my brother, ignoring the younger stallion's questions.

"I'm Fancy Fedora, what's yours?" He asked sarcastically.

"I'm Apple Bloom's brother. Pleasure's all mine." He reached out a hoof to shake Fancy Fedora's and I felt like I could see the sweat drip off of his head.

"That's your name?" he scoffed.

"It is to a stallion I'll never have ta see again." His glare got worse before Fancy really got scared.

"I think I hear my girlfriend calling..." Fancy cowered.

"So do I," Big Mac agreed. "Have a great prom."

Sweetie's POV

"I swear that freak was gonna kill me!"

"Oh, stop being such a queen, Fancy." Diamond Tiara and her boyfriend passed Shadow and I while we were splitting a piece of cake.

"Do you think we're a better couple than the prom queen and queen?" Shadow laughed.

"Yeah," I giggled. "The queens are a handsome couple: but the love's not there."

"What about us?" he suggested. "I think there's a little too much going on between us. We might need a break to cool things down..."

"W-what?" I couldn't believe him...he can't be doing this now! He can't dump me at prom!

"The only way ta save us...is for you ta pass me a bite of that vanilla ice cream. Only way ta cool us down a little faster."

"Shadow!" I laughed. "You're such a jerk!" I took a scoop of the ice cream and smeared it on his face with my hoof.

"Hey!" he chuckled back. "Ya need ta trust me a little more a'ight? You're my girl. Best girl I could ever ask for." Shadow took off his hat, revealing his slicked back hair. His hair looks so good slicked back.

"You know I love you, don't you?" I asked. Shadow bit his lip and pressed his forehead to mine, laying a kiss on my lips.

"Follow me," he asked. Abandoning our desserts, I followed Shadow outside into the beautiful lights. The lit gazebo was radiating under the gorgeous stars, showering a few extra glimmers of the scenery upon Shadow and I. "Ya know, we got three weeks bafore graduation, and then our eighteenth birthdays, followed by our whole lives."

"Well that's a really depressing way to start off this conversation," I remarked.

"Not the way I see it," Shadow smiled. He led me into the gazebo and sat beside me. "Sweetie Belle, I know I ain't gonna get any better than I'm gonna get with you."

"Well I know you're the best I'll ever do," I giggled.

"Well then, since that's settled." Shadow stood up and waltzed around me. "Why don't we go through our lives tagether?"

"What?" I don't know what he's talking about...we're going to the same college. I thought that was the plan: to stay together.

"We're gonna be at the same place, same time, same torture: knowing one of us could get overwhelmed. I don't wanna give up on us, and I don't want you to either. So I'm makin' a proposition...will ya marry me?"


	3. Chapter 3

Sweetie Belle's POV

My reaction to Shadow's question may have not been the wisest: considering I just started screaming like an idiot at the top of my lungs. I couldn't even manage to say yes! I couldn't even bring myself to nod! All I could do with myself is stand there in a less-than-private gazebo screaming like somepony was sawing me in half.

"Is that a no?!" Shadow shouted over me. Digging deep down, I found the thought process to jump onto him with the biggest hug I could fathom.

"Yes!" I squealed with all my might. "Shadow, I want to be your wife! I love you! I love you more than anypony or anything!" Of course, I might have been exaggerating a little. C'mon, though! Shadow just asked me to marry him! To be his bride-to-be! To spend the rest of our lives together! No wonder Big Mac came out in a sprint, judging by my screams. When they stopped he must have assumed I was dead or something.

"What is goin' on out here!?" asked Big Mac. Shadow's neck snapped like a rubber band towards Big Mac's booming voice.

"Uh..just a wild game of prom...tag?" Shadow nervously chuckled. With an un-amused look, Big Mac approached us. The closer he got, the more we could notice his flaring nostrils, and pulsing muscles. I had to defend Shadow: and fast.

"Big Mac!" I exclaimed. "He and I were just talking...I got too excited. Nothing bad happened, I swear!" My eyes had to have been honest, because his intimidating glower started to ease.

"I think it's time we go back inside," Big Mac suggested/demanded. Shadow's eyes met mine and his smile flourished across his face.

"I think he's right chickadee, let's go inside. Think I went crazy and left a half-eaten sandwich in there: that needs ta be gone." I couldn't shake the fear of anxiety looming from Big Mac's stare. Walking back towards the building, Big Mac acted like a barrier. I could barely see Shadow from behind the massive mountain of red coat and muscle.

"Sweetie Belle," Big Mac began. He began walking beside me instead of in front of me. "What really was goin' on out there? Now don't give me any excuses you fillies are always comin' up with. Just tha honest truth."

"Big Mac...that's personal, ok?" I heard him huff from the back of his throat, and it made me begin a long, drawn out, confession. "Fine, I'll tell you! Well, you see, when a young mare and young stallion are very much in love they-"

"What are y'all trying ta tell me?" he asked, with wide eyes.

"I...I'm trying to not tell you Big Mac! It's my business and I want to tell everypony on my own time! Can't you respect that?" With a quiet nod, I saw a sense of judgment in his eyes. He doesn't have to be so nosy! "What? What is that?" I didn't even try to hide my resent.

"It ain't none of my business," Big Mac stated.

"You're right: it's not!" I agreed. "What are you thinking, though? What was the look for?"

"Sweetie, I ain't gonna tell no rumors about ya." The day I see Big Mac, or ANY Apple, gossip...

"What rumor would you spread? I want to know why you gave me that look!"

"Sweetie, you can tell Rarity on your own time. I ain't gonna say a word." I looked at him skeptically, but he gave me a wink. It's crazy to me how adults can pick up so quickly on things. Just before I sat down to the table with the rest of my friends, Big Mac whispered in my ear, "and it'll be a while before ya show."

"What?!" I gasped. My face had to be red, judging by the temperature I felt. Big Mac looked horrified, and I didn't see anypony but him at that moment. "That is NOT what is happening!" I can't believe he'd even suggest something like that! It's preposterous! It's sickening! It's-

"Sweetie, come down chickadee," Shadow beckoned. His welcoming eyes made me forget what Big Mac had even said. I began to reunite with my friends, but then I remembered.

"For your information:" I began. "I am engaged. Not because of any REASON. I am engaged because I'm in love, ok?" He was probably too intimidated to respond. I mean, if I'm any bit as scary as Rarity when she's angry I would be afraid of me too...I need to stop thinking so much. It's really making my brain hurt.

Rarity's POV

"Why would she not be home yet?" I asked. "It's already eleven thirty! Well, it's normal to be concerned, right? After all, fillies and colts these days are simply LOOKING for trouble. Sex, drugs, drinking, the sheer lack of intelligence. But I shouldn't worry about Sweetie, should I? I should have faith in my baby sister!..Then I think of Shadow Strings. URGH! He's the most boorish, uneducated, distasteful-" I let out a soothing sigh and closed my eyes. "Well, what do you think?"

"I just wanted to hear If you Give a Spike a Gem Stone again, please mommy..." Just as the soft and tranquil voice hit my eardrum, I began to remember who I was speaking to.

"Of course, darling. I'm sorry...I shouldn't be speaking this way with you. After all, you're just my baby: I don't have to worry about YOUR prom for many years to come."

"Thirteen, to be exact!" Spike intervened from the hallway.

"Now you decide to show up?" I asked. "What were you doing, anyway?"

"I didn't want to get caught in the tirade! I also didn't feel like forcing Onyx's pajamas on." Why did I have to marry someone so frustrating?

"Oh, I'm sorry. I shouldn't allow you to have to live with the possibility of PARENTING!"

"Hey, if parenting includes venting all my problems to my three year old: let's go for it!"

"You are not funny in the least, Spike," I scowled. "In fact, you're so un-funny that I just may give you back to Twilight!" Spike rolled his eyes and motioned for me to leave the room.

"Time for you to go to sleep."

"Sleep...Yes, well...Very well then. You get a pleasant night's rest, alright darling?" I kissed my precious child's head goodnight, and began my journey to Sweetie's room. I would remain there until she emerged from the sleazy pit they call: prom.


End file.
